On the 26th of April 2023, Mohammad Mofijul Islam, the officer in charge of the Jatrabari police station of Dhaka Metropolitan Police in Bangladesh, recorded a general diary alleging that I, William Gomes, a freelance journalist and Bangladeshi living in the UK, committed a crime under Section 21 of the DSA. The general diary accused me of engaging in propaganda[Read More…]
I read and re-read Michael Gove’s official letter to civil society on Ukraine’s humanitarian crisis, detailing several facets of “Homes for Ukraine.” I’ve been hoping for a system that will eliminate contracts with profit-making organisations that currently house asylum seekers. I argue for a system that empowers communities, individuals, and non-profit organisations to take a more active role in the[Read More…]
York is a cathedral city in northern England, located at the junction of the Ouse and Foss rivers. It is home to two universities as well as a burgeoning ethnic population. In 2021, the city council adopted an anonymous motion expressing the City’s intention of being an anti-racist city. There is much to say about the motion’s process, procedure, and[Read More…]
The term ‘ethnicity’ carries a broad range of connotations. It is highly subjective and typically self-reported, and different organisations use different terms to describe ethnicity. I self-identify as a British Bangladeshi and a Catholic Christian. I’ve had the opportunity to observe how ethnic minorities are represented politically inside the York Labour Party. York Labour has a considerable and growing ethnic[Read More…]
As York prepares to welcome Afghan refugees, housing is becoming a critical issue. It is not that York lacks rental housing, but rather that it lacks affordable housing, a particular problem for people who will likely have left their country with nothing. This article seeks to offer an alternative solution and to investigate ways and means of welcoming more refugees[Read More…]
For various reasons, marginalised people like myself and vulnerable asylum seekers arriving by boat to UK shores are rarely heard from. Nevertheless, we have a lot to say to you. The UK government’s proposed Nationality and Borders Bill is politically expedient, not principled. I attempt to put myself in the shoes of those desperate asylum seekers who put their life[Read More…]
Stan Swamy, a Jesuit priest, and human rights advocate died in custody Monday at the age of 84 after 270 days of arbitrary confinement. Despite his precarious health condition, advanced age, and positive Covid-19 test, the authorities consistently denied him parole and necessary treatment. I urge an unbiased and transparent investigation into Mr. Swamy’s death in order to hold all[Read More…]
To Hon’ble Justice (Retd.) H.L. Dattu Chairperson National Human Rights Commission of India New Delhi Email: chairnhrc@nic.in Cc Mr C. S. Mawri Assistant Registrar and Focal Point on Human Rights Defenders National Human Rights Commission of India New Delhi Email: hrd-nhrc@nic.in Re: Request to raise serious concerns over the ongoing crackdown on human rights defenders in India Dear Justice (Retd.) Dattu,[Read More…]
Dear Rachael Maskell MP, I am William Nicholas Gomes; I am your constituent and a human rights activist and freelance journalist. I am writing about the Indian Jesuit priest and human rights defender, Fr Stan Swamy SJ, who has been taken into custody by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) of India for alleged Maoist links. Fr Stan is 83 years old[Read More…]
Mr Amit Shah Union Home Minister of India Ministry of Home Affairs Government of India Dear Home Minister, I am William Nicholas Gomes, a British Human rights activist and freelance journalist. I am writing to share my great concern regarding the situation of student activists Safoora Zargar, who is four months pregnant, Meeran Haider, Shifa-Ur-Rehman and Sharjeel Imam, all[Read More…]
Rt. Hon. Boris Johnson Prime Minister 10 Downing Street London SW1A 2AA Dear Prime Minister, I hope that your recovery continues apace and that you will soon be back to full health. I write to you in supporting refugees, asylum seekers and migrants to ask you to grant a period of leave to remain, with recourse to public funds and[Read More…]
The Finance Minister Ministry of Finance Government of India New Delhi 110001 Dear Nirmala Sitharaman, I am writing this letter to seek an appointment to submit a representation on some of the clauses of the Finance Bill, 2020 which will adversely affect the not-for-profit sector and as a result weaken the work on poverty alleviation and other charitable causes. Firstly[Read More…]
To the attention of Prof. Fernand de Varennes Special Rapporteur on minority issues Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights Palais des Nations CH-1211 Geneva 10 Switzerland CC: Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief Re: India: Citizenship Bill Discriminates Against Muslims Dear Prof.Fernand de Varennes: I am William Nicholas Gomes, a British Human Rights Activist and[Read More…]
Rt. Hon. Jacinda Ardern Prime Minister PO Box 18888 Parliament Buildings Wellington NEW ZEALAND Dear Madam Prime Minister, I’m William Gomes, Human rights defender and Freelance journalist based in York, United Kingdom. Like many other British round, the country, I had been appalled to wake up to news of the terrorist attack on two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, that[Read More…]
The Chairperson National Human Rights Commission Manav Adhikar Bhawan Block-C, GPO Complex, INA New Delhi- 110023 Dear Chairperson, I am William Gomes, Human rights defender and Freelance journalist. According to the information received from Front Line Defenders, as of 4 March 2019, human rights defender Shanmugam Thangasamy, better known as RS Mugilan, remains missing. On 15 February 2019, RS Mugilan[Read More…]
I am writing to voice my deep concern about the the arrests of Sudha Bharadwaj, Gautam Navlakha, Vernon Gonsalves, Arun Ferreira and Varavaa Rao, as I strongly believe that they are directly linked to their peaceful and legitimate work in defence of human rights.
According to the information received, on August 5, 2018 at around 10.30 pm, Mr. Shahidul Alam was forcibly taken from his house in Dhanmondi, Dhaka, by a group of men in plain clothes, who identified themselves as officers of the Detective Branch (DB) of the Police. Mr. Shahidul Alam’s house was searched and all the CCTV cameras were destroyed.
On 13 October 2016, Anu Muhammad received two messages on his phone from the same number. The first one was sent at approximately 1 am and stated “Death keeps no calendar, and Ansatullah knows no time!”. The second one was sent at 8.43 pm, when he was on his way to Rampura police station to file a complaint about the first threat. It said “Say ‘yes’ to Rampal, otherwise, you must will be hacked to death incredibly by us!”.
The article will critically examine and explore the recent Dhaka café terror attack. It will specifically examine the role of the law enforcement agencies in handling the crisis and will question the effectiveness and appropriateness of law enforcers’ interventions. In addressing this issue, the key focus will remain whether the human rights of victims and perpetrators were respected (Masferrer[Read More…]
The US Shouldn’t Stand in the Way of an Ambitious Global Plastics Treaty 
France’s Global Warming Predicament 
The Spark 
Vanishing of Many Stretches of Aravalli Hills Will Prove Very Costly 
The End of Title 42 and the Triumph of the Border-Industrial Complex 
A New Direction for the World Bank? 
Conspiracy! Whose Conspiracy? 
Wrestlers’ struggle for justice : Will it endure? 
‘Digital India Bill’: Some things to worry about 
Electricity wasted in Mumbai as energy supply is cut off for hours in towns 
Samalkha Nestle Workers Union stage protest against preventing formation of Union 
Odisha rail accident- BSNL’s commendable performance- Should India diminish its public sector, allow private oligarchs to profiteer? 
Wildfire Smoke Chokes Canada and Eastern US 
Terracidal But Ignored Carbon Debt From Gas Exploitation By The World & Climate Criminal Australia 
China and Palestine: No To ‘Piecemeal Crisis Management’ 
Can China and the United States Establish Mutual Respect to Lessen Tensions? 
How Empire Fabricates Atrocities 
For Balanced Progress, Indian Railways Must Get Their Priorities Right 
Determining Scheduled Area: An Update 
The new Parliament house may be dangerously undemocratic 
Ranajit Guha: A duality of literature and history 
DIPAM’s hasty moves to disinvest the government’s residual share in HZL highly imprudent and against the public interest 
A Climate of Betrayal 
Deserving Each Other: The PGA Tour-LIV Golf Merger 
The World Economy Is Changing—the People Know, but Their Leaders Don’t 
Tribute to Chris Hani on 30th martyrdom Anniversary 
Proper Treatment of Rail Accident Victims Demands Long-term Commitment and Support 
What the Kailasa Con Job Reveals About the Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh Release activists incarcerated in Bhima Koregaon Case 
The writing is on the wall: Farmers warn Parliamentarians 
The End Stage of American Empire 
End the culture of impunity and arrest accused Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh now 
Brasilia summit: Lula and Maduro reboot regional integration 
Steaming Ahead: Sikkim’s First Rail Project to Boost Connectivity by 2024 
Five years behind bars for five activists 
Five Years Since The First Arrests In Bhima-Koregaon Case 
Diluted Sovereignty: A Very Australian Example 
Conflict, Migration, and Demography in Russia and Its Border Regions 
Railway Safety Has Been Short of Funds, Needs Early Increase 
Notes on two recent sensations 
Our beloved K.P.Sasi is no more. Filmmaker, cartoonist, writer, mentor, friend and above all tireless activist championing the cause of every underdog, Sasi breathed his last, mid-afternoon this Christmas day – after battling a medical condition for months. I remember the last time I met him, almost exactly a month before he passed away, at the ayurvedic healing center in[Read More…]
